Steve Erceg will have the opportunity of a lifetime at UFC 301 as he takes on Alexandre Pantoja for the UFC Flyweight Championship. There are a lot of people who have questioned the merit of the title shot as he has not even been with the company for a year. Erceg, who hails from Australia, had his debut against David Dvorak at UFC 289 on June 10, 2023.
While he has won all three of his bouts, none of the wins have come against a so-called elite fighter at flyweight. While David Dvorak, Alessandro Costa, and Matt Schnell are good fighters in their own right, none of them have the championship pedigree that someone like Brandon Moreno has. However, the champ has dismissed the criticism and called the Aussie a capable fighter.
Not many fighters will have the fortune of headlining a massive UFC PPV card like the “Astroboy.” So the pressure will be immense on him to live upto all promotion about him. If he can do that or not, fans will find out on May 4. But, above everything else, Steve’s primary aim should be beating Alexandre Pantoja at the event inside the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. But, judging by their records, it will not be a very easy job,
Steve Erceg’s lack of striking prowess will hurt him at UFC 301
Steve Erceg has an MMA record of 12-1. While Out of his 12 wins. the Perth native has 6 submission wins, 2 knockout wins, and 4 decision wins. His only KO win inside the UFC Octagon came against Matt Schnell on March 2, 2024. Ereceg’s only other KO win was back in September 2019, against Paul Loga at Eternal MMA 47. So, it looks like the 28-year-old is not the most dynamic fighter on the feet.
As per UFC Stats, Erceg averages 4.57 strikes per minute while absorbing 3.64 strikes at the same. While it does not seem bad on paper, Steve’s striking certainly is not on the level of Brandon Moreno or Brandon Royval. Both Royval and Moreno went up against Pantoja and came out as the loser. Royval is currently averaging 4.33 strikes and Moreno averages 3.87. While both of them have a lesser striking average than Erceg, the sample size for them is much more than the Aussie.
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Moreno landed 147 strikes against Pantoja at UFC 290, while Royval registered 111 strikes at UFC 296. Both pushed the current champion to the limit with their striking and the power they had behind it. But, Erceg relies more on his volume rather than power, which may not be the best way to go about in this fight. The 28-year-old uses his striking as a disguise to set up his ground game. But, even on the ground, Steve Erceg will not have it easy.
Alexandre Pantoja has fantastic grappling abilities
It won’t be a controversial statement to make that grappling is the most important aspect of Steve Erceg’s fighting style. He has 6 submissions to his name and has already secured 4 takedowns in his three UFC bouts. But, Alexandre Pantoja is no slouch on the mat and arguably has a better resume than Erceg. The Australian fighter is reportedly a 2nd Degree Black Belt from the Wilkes Martial Arts and Fitness Academy.
While the exact details are not available in the public domain, Pantoja is also a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt. For fans who want an example of how good Pantoja is on the ground, should take a look at how he performed against Alex Perez at UFC 277. Perez, who is a decent fighter himself, had no answer when the Brazilian took his back and snuck in a neck crank submission.
In his career, Alexandre Pantoja has 10 submission wins and 8 KO/TKO wins. So there is no doubt that the 34-year-old is a massive favorite to retain the title in his home country. But, there have been massive upsets in the fight game over the years. So fans should not count out Erceg before the final buzzer goes off. Another interesting stat ahead of the contest is neither fighter has been finished in their respective careers. Hence, there are chances that the fight will go down to the judges’ scorecards.
